Winter-time "Frugalness" stories!!

**steve-in-kville** · 11-20-2007, 08:40 PM

I started a thread somewhat like this some weeks ago, but since we're entering the colder months I am reminded of an uncle that unplugged his fridge, kept milk and meat in his garage and only used two rooms in his entire house. He heated with an old pot-belly stove with coal and wood scraps he squandered.

Others?

**bumplett** · 11-20-2007, 10:05 PM

I have no stories to share, but I loved this one!

**baxjul** · 11-20-2007, 10:57 PM

I don't do it here in Florida, but when I lived in PA we had a woostove for our heat. It was in the living room. I used to cook on it! I loved it, the gas bill was lower, and for some reason it made the food taste soooooo good!!!

**latierra84** · 11-21-2007, 12:21 AM

im THIS CLOSE to unplugging our fridge. granted, i live in texas but.. i still wanna try it!

**Squirt** · 11-21-2007, 09:00 AM

If you unplug your fridge, then I should be allowed to wrap DBF's entire house in Saran wrap. Or generic plastic wrap- whatever! When he opened the fireplace flue last week so he could have a smoke inside, I felt cold wind on me. It wasn't a draft, it was more like an Alberta Clipper. I went to check and see if he had any windows open...

Cooking on the woodstove sounds awesome-- too bad we're only going to have an insert. I see hobo pies in my future!

**peanut** · 11-21-2007, 11:28 AM

When we were growing up we had this old rickety TV that stood on 3 legs, the fouth having broken. Dad was not big into TV, so he didn't make viewing comfortable. We had the TV on the concrete floor in the basement - think cold northern climate and uninsulated basement and you get the drift.

He nabbed an old 1950s blue vinyl car seat that seated two and put it in front of the TV. If you leaned back too far the whole thing flipped over and you cracked your head on the floor. We didn't lean over too far.

On cold winter days when we wanted to watch something we'd take these old woolen blankets - government property for Dad's summer students - and wrap up in them on the car seat while watching TV.

Let me tell you, freezing in the dark watching a fuzzy black and white TV (reception wasn't any too good in the basement) was not at the top of our list of things to do. Dad knew it wouldn't be. We grew up a more active family!

Jean

**mikandmari** · 11-21-2007, 12:11 PM

My father used to hang heavy blankets over the doorways to some rooms, and close the heater vents to block them off from the heat, so we only heated a few rooms. We only used the back door in the winter, so the porch blocked the cold, rather than the front door which would allow more cold air in. After using the oven and shutting it off, we would open the door to allow the heat into the house. Also the dishwasher, after we got one. We stocked up on food in the fridge & freezer, but the drinks stayed on the porch to get cold. I'm sure there is more, I'll post when I think of them.

Now that I have my own home, I have a wood burning fireplace. We collect wood from any source we can get it from, and burn fires in the evening so that the heater doesn't run. Then we go straight to bed with an electric mattress pad. The rest of the house is pretty cold! I also dry some of my clothes by draping them over the radiators.

**Dancing Lotus** · 11-21-2007, 01:01 PM

We dont even use the heat , just an electric blanket. I have left the oven door open to heat the house, ( not while its on just after I have used it)

**sdrjeolsen** · 11-21-2007, 01:26 PM

When I was 6 my folks bought a 120 acre farm with an 80 year old farmhouse. It was literally falling apart (it had been moved off its foundation by the 1913 Easter tornado that went through Omaha and never repaired properly). It was so bad, that it was in the contract to doze it into the ground. My dad said no, save it. Plaster was falling everywhere, ceilings leaked like crazy. Previous owners were using the main level to raise hogs in. Rats in the walls, snow piles in the kitchen during the winter, you name it. We cleaned it out and moved in Oct 30th, it didn't even have indoor plumbing. We had to use the outhouse all winter. No running water for 2 years. Mom got water from in town and she heated buckets on the stove and poured into a basin for bathing. We all took our weekly bath in the same water, littlest first. It was barely lukewarm by the time the older kids got to bathe. It was so drafty the first winter, dad could never even get it up to 60 degrees inside. But, he got the house for free (just paid the cost of the land) and fixed it up & added on. Now it is a really nice house.

But looking back that was kinda over the top frugal...especially with the 8 kids they had at the time, ages 1 to 13. Its amazing no one got sick or died from it. We all helped to fix it up, gave me lots of handyman experience.

**cottageliving** · 11-21-2007, 05:47 PM

I don't have any as good as yours, but I really enjoyed reading and remembering...

**acidcookie** · 11-21-2007, 09:28 PM

I don't have a super story, but I did use the snow to my advantage last winter, hehe:

[ame="http://www.flickr.com/photos/acidcookie/390461173/"]Makes a great champagne chiller on Flickr - Photo Sharing![/ame]

**latierra84** · 11-21-2007, 10:26 PM

Originally Posted by acidcookie

I don't have a super story, but I did use the snow to my advantage last winter, hehe:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/acidcookie/390461173/

did you ever read the boxcar children?

**acidcookie** · 11-21-2007, 11:10 PM

Originally Posted by latierra84

did you ever read the boxcar children?

No, never did. Why?

**Lori Biever-Launder** · 11-22-2007, 01:35 AM

I heat food on the lip of my fireplace insert. I can quickly heat veggies, beans, hot water, etc.

I have a sun room that I don't heat. In the winter, we use it and sort of a walk-in cooler. I keep potatoes, fruit, pop, beer, leftover turkey, etc. out there.

**latierra84** · 11-22-2007, 01:49 AM

Originally Posted by acidcookie

No, never did. Why?

my mom read it to us as kids and your picture reminds me of something that the older sister (cant remember her name, character in the book) did with milk to keep it cold. basically its these kids living in a boxcar and how they survived, scavenging for food and coming up with creative ways of keeping things like milk for the smaller ones.